"Gotta better chance of convicting a guy for kicking a dog than killing an Indian…"
In the first quarter of the last century, American neo-colonialism took the form of disenfranchising the Osage Indian tribe from their rights to the vast oil fields of Northern Oklahoma. Director and co-writer (with Eric Roth) Martin Scorsese, in an adaptation of David Gunn’s 2017 book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the F. B.I, tackles this sorrow with ease and ferocity as he depicts the investigation of the murderers responsible for the disappearances and deaths of multiple Osage women.
Not only does the director hold us spellbound for almost 3 hours and a half, he employs two Oscar winners to make sure. Leo DiCaprio’s Ernest Burhart is a dimwitted naif moving to Oklahoma eventually marrying into the tribe and working for his uncle, the “King of the Osage” William Hale (Robert De Niro), a seeming supporter of the Osage but a conniver for the headrights of any Indian crossing his path.
As we witness each duplicitous moment with these two plotters, we become immersed in the Indian ways, so careful is Scorsese to re-create the homely belongings and vintage autos that represent the emergence of America into the century but its demise at the same time. The Boschian silhouette scene in horrific orange and red while men fight a blaze is an apt metaphor for the hell Americans created for the Indians and the downward direction of the American dream so imbued is it in murder and greed. Appropriately the time has been called The Osage Reign of Terror.
Ernest’s marriage to the enigmatic and discerning Osage named Mollie (Lily Gladstone, a strong contender for an Oscar) represents the hope of integration yet becomes a symbol of appropriation. DiCaprio and Gladstone were meant to connect in this role, he enthusiastically simple minded and she smartly contained.
Although the atrocities of Hamas now dwarf most expressions of outrage, the crimes against the Indians stand in stark relief alongside them. Killers of the Flower Moon is the best movie of the year so far promising certain Oscar nominations for picture, director, actress, and set design. As in Oppenheimer, you’ll never regret the three hours.
Killers of the Flower Moon
Director: Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver)
Screenplay: Scorsese, Eric Roth (Forrest Gump) from David Grann Book
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver)
Run Time: 3h 26m
Rating: R
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts NPR’s It’s Movie Time and hosts Cinema Classics as well as podcasts Back Talk and Double Take out of WCBE 90.5 FM. Contact him at JohnDeSando52@gmail.com
